Photos: Giriraj Baskota
Panchthar, March 26
Chaité paddy has been planted earlier this year compared to previous years in the eastern hill district.
Most fields around Hokmakhola in Phidim–2 have already been planted with chaité rice. According to local farmer Upendra Aryal, plantations in the past used to begin only after Chaitra 15, but this year, it has already been completed in many places.
“Seeds sown in Magh are transplanted after they grow. We have been farming here for a long time. This year, we have felt an increase in temperature. It may be because of the heat that the seedlings grew faster than before,” he said.
Another farmer, Chandrakumari Shrestha, also noted that rice transplantation has been completed earlier this season. “There is a major water shortage in these fields. When the land gets warmer, the seedlings grow faster. Maybe that’s the reason,” she said.
Recent rainfall has made it easier to cultivate chaité rice. This crop is grown mainly in lowland areas, where two rice crops are cultivated annually. Rice farming is practised only in areas with sufficient irrigation.
Keshar Bahadur Magarati, Crop Protection Officer at the Agriculture Knowledge Center, Panchthar, said that rice transplantation began a few weeks earlier than usual this year, starting from the first week of Chaitra.
According to him, chaité rice is cultivated in Phidim Municipality, Phalgunanda, Kummayak, Hilihang, and Miklajung. “Last year, chaité rice cultivation had declined in Panchthar due to damaged irrigation canals and fields. This year, with canals restored, production is expected to increase,” he said.
Last year, chaité rice was cultivated on 2,136 hectares of land in Panchthar.
